RENO, Nev. – The No. 23 University of Hawai'i Rainbow baseball team (20-11, 3-2 WAC) dropped a tough, 12-inning game to the Nevada Wolf Pack (15-16, 4-1) 14-12 at Peccole Park Thursday. Lenny Linsky (1-1) took the loss, allowing two runs in 1.2 innings, while Daniel Tinlin (2-0) got the win for Nevada.

 

Kolten Wong led the way for UH, going 4-for-6 with three RBI, three runs and a home run. Greg Garcia was 2-for-2 with two RBI, a double and a run, while Landon Hernandez went 2-for-5 with three runs and a double. Sean Montplaisir added a 2-for-4 game with two RBI, while Kevin Macdonald was 2-for-5 with one RBI and a run and Vinnie Catricala was 2-for-5 with two runs.

 

The Rainbows got on the board in the top of the second. Montplaisir opened the scoring with an RBI-single before Garcia whacked a two-run double, pushing UH out to a 3-0 edge.

 

Nevada answered in the bottom of the third, scoring two runs to cut the deficit back to 3-2. The Wolf Pack then took advantage of a couple of Rainbow mishaps in the bottom of the fourth, scoring two more to take the lead at 4-3.

 

Hawai`i recaptured the lead in the top of the fifth. After a sacrifice fly by Macdonald tied it at 4-4, Wong smacked a two-run home run to right, pushing UH ahead 6-4. Jeffrey Van Doornum then drove in a run later in the inning to extend the lead to 7-4.

 

The Pack came back to score two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, getting it back to 7-6. UN then retook the lead in the sixth, scoring three to go ahead 9-7.

 

Wong and Montplaisir drove in runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game at 9-9 before Christian Johnson blasted the three-run homer to right, giving Hawai`i the 12-9 advantage. But Nevada didn't go away, coming back with three runs in the bottom of the eighth, tying the score at 12-12.

 

The Wolf Pack threatened in the bottom of the ninth, putting runners on first and second with just one out. But Spangler settled down, forcing a pop up and a strikeout, sending the game into extra innings.

 

Travis Simas then came up big for the Pack in the bottom of the 12th, hitting a two-run homer to left, ending the game at 14-12.

 

The series continues with a game tomorrow at 6 p.m. (3 p.m. HST), before the doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. (10 a.m. HST) on Saturday, April 11.